Summary The pilot of a Piper PA-28-140 aircraft, registration C-FXUF, serial number28-20122, departed from the aerodrome at Russell, Manitoba, at 1400 central daylight time on a visual flight rules flight to Gladstone. He took off on Runway16. Between 100and 200feet above ground level, the engine, a LycomingO-320, lost power. The pilot pushed the nose down to maintain control of the aircraft and turned to the right to avoid landing in a large swamp. The aircraft landed in a rolling cultivated field at the end of the runway and collided with trees bordering the field. Buckling of the right wing root leading edge prevented the cockpit door from opening. The pilot exited the aircraft by kicking out the left side window. The pilot, who was the sole occupant, received minor injuries to his chest and his forehead. The aircraft was substantially damaged. First responders to the accident turned the fuel selector OFF to reduce the fire hazard. Ce rapport est galement disponible en franais. Other Factual Information Weather on the day of the accident was obtained from the Yorkton, Saskatchewan, Flight Service Station, 55miles northwest of Russell, Manitoba. The sky was reported as clear with high cirrus cloud, temperature 18.7C, dewpoint 3.7C, and the wind was from 260 at 5knots. Weather at Russell was substantially the same; however, the wind favoured Runway16. The pilot, who was the owner of the aircraft, held a valid pilot permit - recreational.1 He flew seasonally and had accumulated about 220hours of flight time over several years. The occurrence flight was the pilot's second flight of the year. He had accumulated approximately 1.5hours of flight time since late fall of the previous year. Before the flight, the pilot completed a walk-around of the aircraft and took fuel samples from all drains. The fuel samples contained no contamination. The pilot selected the left fuel tank, started the engine, and conducted a run-up in accordance with the aircraft owner's handbook; no discrepancies were found. There was no indication of the presence of carburettor icing. The electric boost pump was turned on for take-off. The fuel tank selector has left and right ON positions at 45 up from the horizontal and two OFF positions at 45 down from the horizontal (Photo1). Two large letters, L and R, had been glued to the selector dial face between the OFF and ON detents on each side. The date at which these letters were installed was not determined. The fuel selector allows fuel to be drawn from either the left or right fuel cell and provides a means to shut the fuel off. Photo1. Fuel selector in left detent Photo2. Fuel selector over L, not in detent Detents in the fuel selector are provided to assure complete alignment of the galleries with either the left or right fuel cell lines and to provide for fuel shut-off. If the selector is not positioned in the detents for the left or right fuel cell, misalignment of the galleries with the fuel lines results in a restriction of fuel flow. Placing the fuel selector dial over the L would result in fuel flow restriction to less than half of the normal flow (Photo2). Placing the fuel selector dial in either the 12o'clock or 6o'clock position will result in the partial exposure of the right and left fuel galleries. The pilot had always turned the selector dial straight up to shut off the fuel. On the occurrence flight, the pilot moved the fuel selector dial from the straight up position toward the large letter L (left). The pilot felt that, when he made the selection to the left tank, the detent was positive but that the engagement was different than normal. The pilot had previously experienced a complete engine power loss on the runway because he had positioned the selector beyond the detent of the right fuel cell selection. The New Piper Aircraft Company conducted tests to establish what effect positioning the fuel selector halfway between OFF and the proper detent for the left fuel cell would have on the performance of the engine. The tests revealed that power settings at 2000rpm for 60seconds resulted in an engine power loss and surging. Conducting an engine run-up using lower power settings, or higher power settings (2000rpm) for less than 30seconds, provided enough fuel flow to sustain normal engine operation. A take-off roll and rotation normally takes less than 30seconds. Examination of the engine, engine fuel system, ignition system, and induction system found no pre-impact anomalies. Fuel filters and fuel lines were examined, and no water contamination was found. A fuel sample taken from the left fuel tank indicated a mixture of automotive gasoline and 100LLavgas but no indication of contamination. The right fuel tank was ruptured, so no fuel sample could be taken. Each fuel cell is of a wet-cell construction with an engine fuel pick-up line, filler neck, and vent line. Examination of the fuel vent system found that the left fuel cell vent line was obstructed. The obstruction was in the aluminum line just before the right angle fitting mounted to the left fuel cell. The left fuel cell's vented gas cap was not obstructed. The pilot wore only a lap belt; the aircraft was not equipped with a shoulder harness. Shoulder harnesses restrain upper-body movement and contribute to reducing upper-body injuries during accidents.